Hypothiocyanite and Hypothiocyanite/Lactoferrin Mixture Exhibit Virucidal Activity In Vitro against SARS-CoV-2

Cegolon, Luca; Mirandola, Mattia; Salaris, Claudio; Salvati, Maria Vittoria; Mastrangelo, Giuseppe; Salata, Cristiano

SARS-CoV-2 replicates efficiently in the upper airways during the prodromal stage, resulting in environmental viral shedding from patients with active COVID-19 as well as from asymptomatic individuals. There is a need to find pharmacological interventions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Hypothiocyanite and lactoferrin are molecules of the innate immune system with a large spectrum cidal activity. The Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency designated the hypothiocyanite and lactoferrin combination as an orphan drug. We report an in vitro study showing that micromolar concentrations of hypothiocyanite exhibit dose- and time-dependent virucidal activity against SARS-CoV-2 and that the latter is slightly enhanced by the simultaneous presence of lactoferrin.